Storm Stories

The  New England Blizzard of 2013 is winding down. The storm centers are starting to compare past major storms to this one. My favorite storm was the Blizzard of ’78 but I’d say this one was handled much better. With a driving ban starting yesterday at 4 pm they avoided having cars stuck on the expressway and stranded drivers which was one of the most horrific memories from ’78. The storm surges are still battering the coast with widespread evacuations but I haven’t heard too many reports of homes being washed into the sea the way they were in ’78.

I was a property insurance adjuster in 1978 so had first hand exposure to the devastation. Now in 2013 I’m a dispatcher for a telecommunication company so still on the front lines, just in a different way.

Here are some pictures from 10:30 last night.

Our Entryway door at the condo in Taunton

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Plowing the parking lot

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The tree in front of out building

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And then 9 am this morning.

Still snowing

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Nice job clearing our walk way

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And the stairs but what happens at the bottom???

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Wake me up when it’s spring.

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Where’s my car?

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Taunton Green 2012

I said I’d get there. It was just a matter of time. The weather hasn’t helped but we finally got a beautiful sunny day so when the sun set the skies were still clear. The perfect night…I thought.
I arrived at the green in the center of Taunton a little before sunset. It was definitely getting colder but you expect that after sunset.
What I didn’t expect was a 20+ degree drop in temperature in less than an hour. Cold as it was the sky was still clear so it was perfect. I began snapping away. I’d only have about an hour before I’d lose the “blue hour”. That’s the time between the afterglow from the sunset and full dark. The sky gets a deep , deep blue and the glowing lights seem to “pop”.

Mother nature isn’t making this easy for me. Now on top of the cold the wind has sprung up and not just a little breeze. The branches on the trees with their hanging lights are really blowing and swaying especially the 40 ft. Christmas tree on the corner of the Green.
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The few people strolling the green departed quickly as the winds became blustery. Ready or not it was time to pack up and leave.